Sarah J. Ryan

Sarah J. Ryan is the Managing Shareholder of the Portland, Oregon office of Jackson Lewis P.C.

Ms. Ryan joined Jackson Lewis in late 2012 following over 25 years of employment and litigation practice in Portland, Oregon. Prior to joining Jackson Lewis, Ms. Ryan chaired the Labor and Employment law practice group at a regional firm with four offices in three states.

Ms. Ryan has been recognized as a leading employment lawyer in Chambers USA since 2008 and has been recognized by Oregon Super Lawyers for many years. Ms. Ryan is listed in the 2014 edition of the Best Lawyers in America. Ms. Ryan, who enjoys an AV Preeminent Rating from Martindale-Hubbell, was selected as an attorney representative to the Ninth Circuit Judicial Conference. Ms. Ryan has served on numerous boards, including the Oregon Legal Aid Society, Oregon Lawyers Against Hunger (founding board member), the Multnomah Bar Foundation and the Oregon Chapter of the Make A Wish Foundation. In addition, Ms. Ryan is a former President of the Oregon Chapter of the Federal Bar Association and past general counsel to Portland Human Resources Management Association (PHRMA).

Ms. Ryan is a frequent speaker before business and employer associations, including the Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries, the Oregon Staffing Association, the American Staffing Association of Washington, the International Public Management Association for Human Resources (IPMA), and the Pacific Northwest Defense Counsel (PNDC).

Ms. Ryan authored the chapter Defending and Defeating Employee Lawsuits in Inside the Minds: Dealing with Employee Lawsuits published by Thomson West in 2005 and the Pleadings and Claims chapter in Federal Civil Litigation in Oregon manual published by the Oregon State Bar Legal Publications in 1994, 1998, 2002 and 2009.

Ms. Ryan is a member of the Oregon State Bar, the Washington State Bar Association, the DC Bar (inactive) and the Massachusetts Bar (inactive). Ms. Ryan is admitted to the United States District Court for the Districts of Oregon and Washington, the Ninth Circuit, the District of Columbia Court of Appeals, and the United States Supreme Court.

Ms. Ryan received her BA cum laude in Philosophy from the University of Nebraska at Omaha and her JD from the University of Oregon Law School, where she twice received the AmJur Award for Excellence. After law school, she clerked for the Honorable George Woodrich, Lane County Circuit Court Judge for the State of Oregon.

Ms. Ryan represents some of Oregon’s leading employers and provides counsel and litigation services in general employment law, as well as a wide range of employee relations issues. Ms. Ryan has extensive experience advising clients and litigating employment claims regarding harassment, discrimination and retaliation, intellectual property protection, breach of contract, wrongful termination, Title VII, ADA, ADEA, employment torts, wage and hour, and state and federal family medical leave laws. She has defended clients in Oregon and Washington state and federal courts and before the EEOC, the Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries (BOLI) and the Washington Human Rights Commission. Ms. Ryan has assisted one of her clients in obtaining nine summary judgment dismissals in an employment case in just one forum. Ms. Ryan also proactively assists her clients in preventing legal problems by focusing her counsel and advice on creative solutions to personnel issues that eliminate or reduce the risk of litigation.